DARTMOUTH — Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux is calling for the resignations of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and the now deposed Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Greg Bovino, saying their incompetence has undermined public trust in law enforcement nationwide following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents.
In a statement issued Monday, Heroux said that following the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, which represented two of three recent instances where U.S. citizens were shot by federal agents, Noem and Bovino deviated from standard national law enforcement protocol by publicly declaring the agents’ innocence before reviewing the results of a formal investigation, adding that their matching statements contradict what independent observers can determine from video footage of both incidents.
“The legitimacy of law enforcement is necessary to maintain the consent of the governed,” Heroux said, adding that when law enforcement’s legitimacy is undermined, it erodes public trust and undermines voluntary compliance, which prevents law enforcement from doing their job.
“When communities don’t view law enforcement as legitimate, they are less likely to cooperate, report crimes, and even take matters into their own hands, which is in no one’s interest,” Heroux said. “As a master’s student in criminology at the University of Pennsylvania, we were taught that the legitimacy of law enforcement is the single most important factor in preventing crime.”
Heroux said that as sheriff, he regularly handles use-of-force cases, reviews every incident, and imposes discipline when warranted. He added that while use-of-force is authorized in law enforcement, excessive force is never authorized.
“I have fired people working in my jail for far less egregious cases of excessive force than what we have seen ICE doing all over the country,” Heroux said.
Heroux said that if there were a recurring issue with his deputies and correctional officers using excessive force, he would immediately require everyone to attend an in-service training on the lawful use-of-force, and that he does not see that happening at the federal level.
“I would be horrified if I saw any of my deputy sheriffs or correctional officers behaving the way that ICE agents have been doing their job,” Heroux said. “I am horrified by what I am seeing.”
Heroux added that in the aftermath of a deadly use-of-force by law enforcement, the officer is always put on paid administrative leave.
“The law requires the leave to be paid until due process is given to the officer under investigation,” Heroux said. He added that agencies are supposed to withhold judgment and withhold definitive public statements until the investigation is complete, noting officials can describe what “appears” or “seems” to have happened, but should not make conclusive statements before the completion of an investigation.
“When the investigation is complete, the results can be made public,” Heroux said. “This is boring and time-consuming, but necessary and appropriate to avoid rush judgments, maintain the trust of communities, and to protect the legitimacy of law enforcement. What we have been seeing is amateur hour.”
He said the situation was concerning because his office has deputy sheriffs performing capias arrests and assisting local police with duties such as traffic details, and he’s worried that the direction federal law enforcement is going in could erode public trust in policing at every level.
“On the ground, local and state law enforcement often engages in crowd-control when an ICE operation draws onlookers; peaceful assembly and recording ICE activity is a constitutionally protected activity,” Heroux said. “By one account, there have been 2300 court cases that have concluded that ICE has violated civil rights. ProPublica found that over 170 US citizens have been held by immigration officials, some of whom were beaten or worse. Police chiefs and sheriffs everywhere say that ICE is using excessive force in conducting its duties.”
Heroux added that this is not a partisan issue, citing prominent Republicans who have stated publicly that ICE’s actions while conducting immigration enforcement are concerning, such as Senator Susan Collins of Maine who raised concerns about ICE’s “excessive” tactics and called for investigations into whether force was used appropriately and Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who called for a “thorough and impartial investigation” into the fatal shooting in Minneapolis.
“There is clearly a problem within DHS leadership — Rush judgments,” Heroux said. “Conclusions before investigations. Picking sides.”
Heroux added that the government is not supposed to pick sides, but rather follow well-established procedures after a use-of-force incident, especially when a death has occurred.
“There is no recognition by the administration that there is a problem as evidenced by official statements from President Trump, JD Vance, Kristi Noem, or Greg Bovino,” Heroux said, adding that without recognizing an issue, there can be no improvement or accountability.
“This is willful indifference to the rule of law and human life,” Heroux said. “This is why the shootings will continue.”
He said this is why law enforcement is in its greatest danger since its legitimacy was called into question after the killing of George Floyd.
“Law enforcement is not allowed to break the law to enforce the law,” Heroux said.
